Furnace



July 10, 1945.

c. A. HUWER FURNACE 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 14 INVENTOR ATT NEY Patented July 10, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FURNACE Charles A. Huwer. Detroit, Mich. Application March 14, 1942, Serial No. 434,706

13 Claims.

The invention relates generally to furnaces and it. has particular relation to a forced air circulating furnace adapted for use in homes or similar buildings.

I The use of forced air heating systems for heat ing. homes has greatly increased in the last few years and. at the present time practically all new installations are of this character. Along with this increased use of forced air heating systems, greater attention has been directed to the use of basements and utility rooms, especially in smaller homes, and at the present time the prospective purchaser of a home is influenced considerably by the arrangement in the basement and the amount of free room ,or space which renders the basement or utility room usable in different ways. By having forced air circulating systems as compared to gravity heating systems, the air ducts can be disposed horizontall against the ceiling and thus there is no interference on account of inclined pipes. Moreover, the use of forced air circulationhas a1 lowed the use of smaller air ducts and this is an additional factor reducing the amount of space requiredfor the furnace installation. C'onsidering these facts, it is natural that the builder should desire a furnace as small as possible in order to conserve space while still having a unit which is sufficient to properly heat the home. Moreover, a smaller heating unit enables the builder to place the unit in, positions where it might not be possible in the case of a larger furnace, and this naturally results in greater furnace adaptability in different designs of buildings. Such factors also afiect the prospective punchaser and home owner for similar reasons.

One object of the present invention is to provide an improved. fumace of the general char.- acter indicated, which is so constructed arranged that a smaller space is required for the furnace without sacrificing heat-capacity.

Another object of the invention is to provide a furnace such as mentioned which is even more efficient in the matter of extracting heat from the heating element and exhaust gases, all tothe end that the cost of operating the furnace will be decreased. 7

Anotherobject of the invention is to provide a furnace such as mentioned which costs'less to manufacture and assemble so'as to thereby reduce the initial cost of the furnace and conseqiliently the cost of the home or building in whichit is placed.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following specification, from the I drawings relating thereto, and from the claims hereinafter set forth.

For a better understanding of the invention,

reference may be had to the drawings. wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary elevational View showing a furnace constructed according to one form of the invention;

Fig 2' is. a cross-sectional View on a larger scale taken substantially along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional View taken substan tially along the line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 6--6 of Fig. 2; v A

Fig. 7 is a view on a larger scale of the detail shown in the circle 1 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 8 is across-sectional view taken substantially along the line 8-8 of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 9 is a side elevational View, with parts broken away and shown in cross-section, illustrating another form of the invention.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, the furnace casing comprises oppositely disposed side walls It and H which are joined to a back wall l2 by interfolded and welded metal edges indicated generally-at 13. At their front edges the walls It and II have flanges M and I5 and between. these flanges, fixed panels l6 and I1, as best shown by Fig. 1, are provided so as to connect the flanges across the front of the casing. The edges of such panels and flanges may have suitablecontacting edge portions welded or otherwise joined so as toprovide a positive connection. Upper and lower doors I8 and 19 are provided between the panel's so that access may be had to the burner and to the blower as will be presently seen. As seen. in Fig. 5, a bottom wall 20 is provided and this is fastenedto the side and back walls by interfolded edgessuch as mentioned and at its front, the wall 28 has an upwardly turned flange 2i disposed between the side flanges l4 and I5 and terminating at the bottom edge of the door I 9.

'As :best shown by Figs. 2 and 5, the casing has an intermediate wall 22 which is fastened at its edgesto the side walls l0 and H and this intermediate wall is located rather adjacent the doors #8 and i9 and provides a space 23'for an oil burner or other heating unit 24, which is supported on a bracket 25 fastened to such wall. At upper. and lower ends of the space. such space is closed. by means of upper and. lower walls 25 and 26, from which it follows that the burner is 10- cated in a space which is separated from the remainder of the casing. It might be added that the side edges of the intermediate wall 22 may be firmly connected to the side wall I and l I, such as by attaching strips 27, and these may be welded, for example, to the side wall. Similarly, the walls 25 and 26 at the upper and lower ends of the space 23 may be welded to the panels l6 and I1, respectively; and to the intermediate wall 22.

For dividing the space between the back wall l2 and intermediate wall 22 into cold air and warmed air chambers, indicated at 28 and 29, respectively, a partitioning wall 30 s provided and this wall forms an integral part of a boxlike heating chamber or element indicated generally by the numeral 3|. This heating element, in addition to the wall, 30, has vertically extending side walls 32, 33, and 34 which are welded together and the upper and lower ends of the heating element are closed by top and bottom walls 36 and 31, which are welded to the side walls. It will be understood that all of these walls forming the heating element are seam welded or otherwise sealingly welded so that gases within the heating element do not escape into the space around the latter. It may be noted also that the walls 32 and 34 project substantially beyond the side wall 33 and top and bottom walls 36 and 31 to provide fins 39 and 40, and these provide additional, heated surfaces over which circulating air will fiow. At opposite sides, the wall 30 projects laterally towards the back wall l2 and the intermediate wall 22 as indicated at 4| and 42, and, as also shown by Fig. '7, on the extreme edges of these projecting portions, flexible sealing strips 43 are fastened by means of sheet metal holding strips 44 fastened to the flanges. These sealing strips contact the wall I2 and wall 22 so that normally air will not flow past such edges from one chamber to the other. It may be stated too that if a positive connection is required, the portions 4| and 42, instead of having sealing strips 43, may have their outer edges bent parallel to and bolted to the walls I2 and 22, respectively. Sealing gaskets could also be inserted between such flanges and walls.

As shown best by Fig. 3, the wall 30 at its upper end projects above the end wall 36 and engages in one fold of an S-shaped strip 46 and the opposite fold of the strip 46 receives wall portions 4'! and 48 of cold and warmed air ducts 49 and 56, respectively. The remaining walls of the ducts are similarly connected to the upper edges of the outer walls of the casing by means of fastening strips and these may be welded to the connected parts if desired.

At its lower end, the wall 30 projects substantially below the bottom wall 31, and, as best shown by Figures 5 and 8, a strip 54 is welded to the lower edge of the wall and this strip has an offset portion 55 which provides a slot at the end of the wall. This slot receives the upper edge portion of one wall 56 of the outlet end of a blower housing 5! having additional walls 58, 59, and 60, as seen in Fig. 2, which jointly form a substantially square discharge opening for the blower. The blower housing is supported on the bottom wall of the furnace in turn to be supported on the basement floor or furnace base and this serves to support the wall and the heating element forming a partthereof.

Referring to Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5, the lower end of the space 29 is sealed around the blower discharge opening by means of an inclined sheet metal member 6i extending upwardly from the three walls 58, 59, and 60 of the blower and which has a folded lower edge 62 receiving the upper edges of such walls. At its upper edge, the member 6| has a channel 63 in which a flexible sealing strip 64 is clinched and such strip, in turn, has sealing contact with the .walls l0, l2 and 22 of the furnace. As best seen in Figs. 3 and 8, the lower folded part 62 of member 6| also extends along and receives the upper edge Of the wall 56 of the blower and it will be noted that the offset portion 55 on wall 30 is sufficiently spaced from the latter as to receive such folded part.

From the foregoing it will be evident that the member 6| may be easily placed on the upper edge of the blower opening and that it, in conjunction with the offset 55 on wall 30, seals the lower part of space 29 around the blower discharge opening.. Moreover, it will be appreciated that the member 6| is sturdy in character and that its inclined walls will avoid corners or pockets so as to thereby increase the efiiciency of air fiow. Finally, it may be noted that when assembling, the blower may be placed in position, then the member may be placed in position and that then the wall 30 may be lowered so as to engage the wall 56 of the blower. Manufacture and assembly is thu greatly simplified while still obtaining sealed contacts where necessary.

As shown by Fig. 5, the blower is driven by means of a motor 65 having a belt 66, which engages a pulley 6'! mounted on the blower shaft indicated at 68. The blower is of standard design and it will be understood that with the blower operating air is drawn into the center of the blower which is open at opposite ends of the shaft Now referring to Fig. 3 again, a filter 'H is disposed at the bottom of the cold air inlet chamber 28 and this filter is so disposed that it rests on the bottom wall 20 and leans against the lower portion of the partitioning wall 30. As'shown best by Fig. 5, the right hand end of the filter ll fits up against the back wall 42, but the front end or left hand end of the filter is substantially spaced from they door I9. In order to prevent air drawn by the blower from passing around this end of the filter instead of through it, a triangular piece of metal 14 is provided, as shown by Figures 5 and 6, and this may be fastened to the wall 26 and to the side wall II. From this it should now be apparent that air drawn through the chamber 28 will first pass through the filter N, then through the central part of the blower, then upwardly through the discharge end of the blower, and then upwardly around the heating element and along its surfaces, and finally the air will discharge into the warmed air duct 50.

The burner 24 as shown is of the gun fired type and the barrel of the burner, indicated at 16, projects through the intermediate wall 22 and through the side wall 34 of the heating element so that the burning of the oil mixture will take place within the heating element. In order that the barrel 16 will project into the heating element, the wall 22 and the wall 34 have corresponding rectangular openings such as indicated at IT in Fig. 3 and between these opening a rectangular closure 18 is provided which is welded to the wall 34 and bolted to the wall 22 in a sealthe burner 18 extends through the closure 18 and intothe heating element.

The rectangular opening in the wall 22 and through whichthe barrel 16 extends is closed externally of the wall 22 by means of'the supporting bracket 25 and an upper plate 19, although any suitable means may be used for closing the outer side ofthe wall 22 around the barrel. In order to provide means for creating an opening through such wall 22 in the event of any rapid expansion of gases and in order to permit viewing the burner flame, an' access box 80 having a lid 8| may form part of the plate 19, but it will beunderstood that normally the lid is closed so that air does not enter into the heating element except through the burner. It might be mentioned at this time that instead of using an oil burner a gas fired burner may beemployed and variations to accommodate the gas burner may readilybemade.

In order'to evacuate burnt gases, flue pipes 85 are connected to the upper end of th heating element wall 30. These flues are connected in turn to an economizer unit 86 which isdisposed within the cold air chamber 28 and the economizer unit, in turn, is connected to a lower flue element 81 that extends outwardly through the wall I! of the furnace. It is to be understood that connections between these parts are such that no gases can escape into the air circulating chamber and preferably all joints are seam 'or otherwise welded to accomplish this result. It might be noted too that the economizer unit 86 isprovided with fins 89, as shown in Fig. 2, to

further increase heat conducting surfaces adaptstantially warmed, which, in effect, means that a substantial amount of heat is extractedr'rom the flue gases after they leave the heating element. Also, it will be appreciated that air passing downwardly through the cold air chamber will pass over the outer surface of the wall 30 andsince this wall is heated, additional heat will be extracted by the cold air before it enters the blower. I

Hence, the heating of the air and the circulation thereof is carried on efllciently so as to absorb the maximum amount of heat from the furnace. It is alsoto be appreciated that by having the one wall of the heating elementserve as a partition between the cold and warmed air chambers, that the size of the furnace may be reduced in transverse dimensions, or, in other words, in looking at the structure in Fig. 3, the walls land I i may be brought closer together. Not only doe this result in a saving of metal necessary to build the furnace, but it results in a more compact structure which requires less room and this is highly advantageous for reasons already set forth. Again, by locating the blower below the heating element, less room is required laterally between the walls l0 and H as would otherwise berequired if the blower were disposed in the cold air wall 30 as seen in Fig. 3.

It might be added finally that persons assembling one of the furnaces will have less work to do and less metal cutting due to the arrangement of parts, while still being able to obtain sealed chambers and joints wherever required. In other words, assembling ofthe furnace requires a minimum of labor and metal cutting.

Fig. 9 shows another form of the invention and in this case the casing of the furnace, indicated generally at 90, has a front compartment 9| having a burner 92, a warmed air chamber 93, and a cold air inlet chamber 94. The chambers 93 and M are separated by a wall 95 forming part of a heating unit or element 96 and the lower end: of this wall has an opening which fits the discharge end 91 of a blower 98 adapted to force air into the warmed air chamber 93. At its upper end, the heating element 9.6- is connected to a flue 99, in turn connected to an economizer unit I00, which finally is connected to an exhaust flue IlH extending outwardly of the furnace. Filters I02 are provided in the cold air chamber above the blower and in this case two filters are shown. It may now be observed that cold air entering the cold air chamber passes over the economizer unitsand flue elements therein, along the partitioning wall of the heating element, through the filters, then through the blower and into the lower end of the warmed air chamber, and then upwardly over the walls of the heating element. The heating element in this case is on the order of that already described in connection with the first form of the invention, in that one wall thereof forms the'partition.

Although two forms of the invention have been illustrated anddescribed in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art.that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

'l. A furnace comprising a box-like casing having vertically arranged side walls, a hollow metal heater element within the casing and having vertically arranged side walls disposed in spaced relation to the side walls of the casing, vertical flanges projecting laterally from opposite sides of the element and extending substantially to opposite sides of the casing so as to divide the casing but being spaced therefrom and free from metal to metal contact therewith, flexible vertically extending sealing strips on the flanges adjacent their outer edges and projecting laterally beyond such edges into flexible wiping engagement with the casing wall whereby the casing is divided into two vertically arranged chambers, a blower in the bottom of the casing and connesting the lower ends of the chambers, and means for supporting the heating element on the blower housing, the arrangement being characterized by the fact that the assembly of blower housing and heater element with flanges may be assembled with the casing side walls and is sup ported vertically without any rigid connections adjacent their outer' edges and projecting laterally beyond such edges into flexible wiping en-v gagement with the casing walls whereby the easing is divided into two vertically arranged chambers, a blower inthe bottom of the casing and connecting the lower ends of the chambers, and means for supporting the heater element on the blower housing including a lower plate portion connected to the element and having its lower edge interengaged with the blower housing in such manner that the parts may be engaged merely bylowering the heating element assembly into operative relation with the blower, the ar rangement being characterized by the fact that the assembly of blower frame and heater element with flanges may be assembled with the casing side walls and is supported vertically with out any rigid connections between the side walls and flanges.

3. A furnace comprising a box-like casing having vertically arranged side walls, a hollow metal heater element within the casing and including a vertical partioning wall extending cross-wise between two side walls of the casing and substantially into contact with such walls but movable relative thereto so as to divide the casing into two vertically arranged chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and having an upwardly open discharge opening for discharging air upwardly into the lower'end of one chamber,

and means on the lower edge of the partitioning wall releasably engaging an edge portion of the blower defining the discharge opening, said means being of such character that the partitioning wall can be lowered into engagement with such edge portion of the discharge opening and so that the wall is vertically supported by such engagement.

4. A furnace comprising a box-like casing having vertically arranged walls, a partitioning wall in the casing dividing the casing into cold and warmed air chambers vertically arranged in side by side relation, means for heating the air at one side of the partitioning wall, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with a discharge opening communicating with the warmed air chambeer and an intake opening communicating with the cold air chamber, means on one edge of the partitioning wall sealingly engaging a portion of the housing edge defining the discharge opening, a sheet metal strip extending along and releasably but sealingly engaging the remainder of the housing edge around the discharge opening, and means on such strip having sealing contact with the furnace casing so as in conjunction with the partitioning wall to seal the space around said discharge opening in such manner that cold air can enter the warmed air chamber only through the discharge opening.

5. A furnace comprising a box-like casing having vertically arranged walls, a partitioning wall in the casing dividingthe casing into cold and warmed air chambers vertically arranged in side by side relation, means for heating the air at one'side of the partitioning wall, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with a discharge opening communicating with the warmed air chamher and an intake opening communicating with the cold air chamber, means on one edge of the partitioning wall sealingly engaging a portion of the housing edge defining the discharge opening, a sheet metal strip having a folded side edge releasably embracing the remainder of the housing edge defining the discharge opening, and a sealing strip connected to the opposite side edge of the strip and having sealing engagement with the casing so as in conjunction with the partitioning wall to seal the space around said discharge opening.

6. In a furnace having a box-like casing, a partitioning wall extending vertically between two opposed side walls of the casing to divide the easing into cold and warm air chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with a discharge opening communicating with the warmed air chamber and with an inlet opening communicating with the cold air chamber, said partitioning wall having its vertical side edges spaced from the latter walls, flexible sealing means on the vertical side edges of the partitioning wallahd flexibly contacting, the casing walls so as to seal the space between the casing side walls and edges of the partitioning wall while allowing quick assembly of the partitioning wall and casing, means on the lower edge of the partitioning wall releasably engaging an edge por tion of the discharge opening of the blower, means including a flexible sealing strip sealing the space around the remainder of the edge of the discharge opening so that air can enter the lower end of the warmed air chamber only through the discharge opening, and means for heating air in the warmed air chamber.

7. In a furnace having a box-like casing, a partitioning Wall extending vertically between two opposed side walls of the casing to divide the casing into cold and warm air chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with'a discharge opening communicating with the warmed air chamber and with an inlet opening communicating with the cold air chamber, said partitioning wall having its vertical side edges spaced from the latter walls, flexible sealing means on the vertical side edges of the partitioning wall and flexibly contacting the casing walls so as to seal the space between the casing side walls and edges of the partitioning wall while allowing quick assembly of the partitioning wall and easing, means on the lower edge of the partitioning wall releasably engaging an edge portion of the discharge opening of the blower, a sheet metal element releasably engaging the remainder of the edge of the discharge opening and substantially closing the space around such remaining edge of the discharge opening, and a flexible sealing strip around the outer edge of the element and contacting the casing walls adjacent thereto for sealing said space while permitting ready insertion'of the parts into the casing and assembly thereof, and means for heating air in the warmed air chamber.

8. In a furnace having a box-like casing, a partitioning wallextending vertically between two opposed side walls of the casing to divide the casing into cold and Warm air chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with a discharge opening communicating with the warmed air chamber and with an inlet opening communicating with the cold air chamber, said partitioning wall having its vertical side edges spaced from the latter walls, flexible sealing means on the vertical side edges of the partitioning wall and flexibly contacting the casing walls so as to seal the space between the casing side walls and edges of the partitioning wall while allowing quick assembly of the partitioning wall and casing, means on the lower edge of the partitioning wall releasably engaging an edge portion of the discharge opening of the blower, means including a flexible sealing strip sealing the space around the remainder of the edge of the discharge opening so that air can enter the lower end of the warmed air chamber only through the discharge opening, and sheet metal means including a part of the partitioningwall forming a box-like heater elementfor warming the air in the warmed air chamber.

9. In a furnace having a box-like casing, a partitioning wall extending vertically between two opposed side walls of the casing to divide the casing into cold and warm air chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with a discharge opening communicating with the warmedair chamber and with an inlet opening communicating with the cold air chamber, said partitioning wall having its vertical side edges spaced from the latter walls, flexible sealing means on the vertical side edges of the partitioning wall and flexibly contacting the casing walls so as to seal the space between the casing side walls and edges of the partitioning wall while allowing quick assembly of the partitioning wall and casing, means on the lower edge of the partitioning wall releasably engaging an edge portion of the discharge opening of the blower, means including a flexible sealing strip sealing the space around the remainder of the edge of the discharge open ing so that air can enter the lower end of the i warmed air chamber only through the discharge opening, sheet metal means including a part of the partitioning wall forming a box-like heater element for warming air in the warmed air chamber, and a burner fastened to one wall of the casing and communicating with the interior of the heater element for heating it.

In a furnace having a box-like casing, a partitioning wall extending vertically between two opposed side walls of the casing to divide the easing into cold and warm air chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and including a sheet metal housing provided with a discharge opening communicating with the warmed air chamber and with an inlet opening communicating with the cold air chamber, said partitioning wall having its vertical side edges spaced from the latter walls, flexible sealing means on the vertical side edges of the partitioning wall and flexibly contacting the casing walls so as to seal the space between the casing side walls and edges of the partitioning wall while allowing quick assembly of the partitioning wall and casing, means on the lower edge of the partitioning wall releasably engaging an edge portion of the discharge opening of the blower, means including vertically arranged side walls, a hollow metal heater element within the casing and having vertically arranged side walls disposed in spaced relation to the side walls of the casing, vertical flanges projecting laterally from opposite sides of the element and extending substantially to opposite sides of the casing so as to divide the casing, sealing means operatively connecting the flanges to the casing walls so that the casing is divided into chambers sealed relative one to the other, a blower in the bottom of the casing and connecting the lower ends of the chambers, and means for supporting the heater element on the blower housing including a lower plate portion connected to the element and having its lower edge interengaged with the blower housing in such manner that the parts may be engaged merely by lowering the heating element assembly into operative relation with the blower.

12. A furnace comprising an outer box-like casing having vertically arranged side'walls a hollow box-type metal heating element disposed within the casing and including partitioning wall portions for dividing the casing into vertically arranged chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and having inlet and discharge openings communicating with the lower ends of the chambers respectively for drawing cold air from one chamber and directing it upwardly into the other, a burner unit fastened to one casing wall and communicating with the interior of the heating element for heating the latter, resilient means for sealing the space between the edges of the partitioning wall portions and the opposed side walls of the casing, and resilient means for sealing the space between the edges of the blower discharge opening and the lower end of the chamber with which it communicates, both of said sealing means being of such character that the angularly related walls of the casing may assume a non-rectangular form without interfering with the sealing means sealing one chamber from the other.

13. A furnace comprising an outer box-like casing having vertically arranged side walls, a hollow box-type metal heating element disposed within the casing and including partitioning wall portions for dividingthe casing into vertically arranged chambers, a blower in the lower part of the casing and having inlet and discharge openings communicating with the lower ends of the chambers, respectively, for' drawing cold air from one chamber and directing it upwardly into the other, a burner unit fastened to one casing wall and communicating with the interior of the heating element for heating the latter, flex ible means for sealing the space between the edges of the partitioning wall portions and the opposed side walls of the casing while permitting movement of the casing walls relative to the partition wall, and means for sealing the space between the edges of the blower discharge opening and the lower end of the chamber with which it communicates while permitting movement of the casing walls relative to the blower, both of said sealing means being of such character that the angularly related walls of the casing may assume a non-rectangular form without interfering with the sealing means sealing one chamber from the other.

CHARLES A. I-IUWER. 

